Floating down the river...

Tired of buses taking us around the country, we decided to try and catch a cargo boat down the Rio Ichilo to the small city of Trinidad in the Jungle. We spent three days waiting around in Puerto Villaroel with a prospective boat, and every day seemed like the captain, Jesus ('Heyzeus'), said mañana (tomorrow). Finally, the boat's crew finished filling the tanks with petrol, our cargo, and we were told that we'd be leaving that night, only to find out that we were only sleeping on the boat that night, and not actually departing until the next morning. So, we enjoyed one last fish dinner (our fourth night in a row) and boarded the boat with another couple from France, Sandra and Nicholas. We strung up our newly bought hammocks in the main dinning cabin and settled down for the night.

The boat had three levels; the first housed the motor the bathroom (which went directly into the river) and storage, the second level was the dinning cabin, small kitchen, captain's cabin and another cabin and the top was the steering room another small cabin and the rest was roof (great for stargazing or suntanning). The boat was tied to a large, flat tanker, which was directed down the river, and while the sun was up, the crew had to regularly hose down the tanker's deck to keep it cool.

At five o'clock the first morning we could hear the crew up and about, getting the boat ready to leave. We head the motor start, and die. One of the crew came in to get help from Colin and Nicholas to pull the rope to start the motor. Still no luck. So the small motor boat was sent back the the port to get a new battery.

Eventually we were off down the river, but with the motor rumbling and the sun rising, we weren't able to sleep much more. Breakfast was deep fried eggs and dough and after eating we all found quiet spots, out of the way, to read and watch the shore line. The heat of the day was somewhat lessened by the breeze we got sitting on the deck, the only shade we were able to find was on the bottom storage deck, where we re-strung our hammocks in the breeze.

There was not a lot of wildlife to be seen on the trip, the river was wide and murky. However, there were lots of herons and shore birds, and we saw some parrots fly overhead too. The most exciting was the occasional spotting of a pink river dolphin swimming by. That night we tied up on shore again, the river being too narrow to safely navigate with a giant gasoline filled tanker in the dark.

Our second day aboard the boat, we cooked a 'Canadian' breakfast of pancakes and hash browns for everyone aboard. It turned out OK, and all the food was eaten, but Colin made sure he wasn't scheduled to cook fish for lunch. While chatting with the captain, he was offered a chance to drive the boat and barge. Of coarse he accepted and after the captain made sure he was dressed appropriately, I was called up for the photo shoot.

Several rivers joined onto the Ichilo, and the flooding from months prior was evident in the sunken forest, and floating trees. We stopped at one point to exchange gasoline for a huge load of bananas with a small community along the shore, and there, the crew moved the large gas tanker from the side of the boat to the front. That night we star gazed from the roof of the boat and saw the most amazing southern sky yet (and a few shooting stars!). The boat did not stop, but continued on its way down river. Amazingly we slept through the noise of the motor all night.

Our last day on the boat. We were scheduled to arrive at Puerto Barador around 5pm. We played games and read the rest of the day. For lunch we were served fish-head soup. As I ate I kept telling myself I was eating beef-noodle soup, until I looked across the table at another bowl and the part fish head staring back at me. Ugh. Ate some Oreos after lunch to get the fishy taste out of my mouth.

Later in the day we arrived at a spot along shore (but what looked only to us like submerged trees on the shore), as the large boat tied up to a nearby tree we loaded into a small motor boat with all our stuff. The captain drove us through flooded land to Puerto Barador. Along he way there were several flooded buildings, and collapsed huts. The town was still in a state of reconstruction and the river waters still have a long way to drop before the town is back to normal. We thanked our captain and caught the first combi into the city of Trinidad.

The road to Trinidad showed us the destruction of the flooding, more than we had seen upstream. Hundreds of families forced to move from their homes to right beside the road where they had built temporary huts made from branches and tarps. The fields below the road were flooded the entire way, farming was waiting for the waters to disapear. Kids swam in what was once a soccer field. Cows and horses crowded along the side of the road eating the only grass that wasn't below water. The entire area was underwater for 3 months, and now all they can do is wait as the water slowly recedes.

We are resting here for a few days, watching the motorbikes and scooters zip around the main plaza in circles, we assume as a form of air conditioning. The humidity makes us want to hide in the shade and eat ice cream all day. But I'm sure we will move along soon. We are hoping to get into Reserva Biosferica del Beni next to see some animals and go canoeing in the jungle.